


The Scientific Witch of Strangereal

by AdagumoNoRikako



Category: Ace Combat, Touhou Project
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-03-25
Updated: 2020-06-01
Packaged: 2021-02-28 18:01:26
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 3,419
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23311297
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AdagumoNoRikako/pseuds/AdagumoNoRikako
Summary: What happens when you have a drunk author, the wackiness of both Touhou and Ace Combat and have a raging desire to further expand the timeline? You get this.A failed scientist in Gensokyo, Asakura Rikako instead heads over to the Outside World using the knowledge in Yumemi's book. Taking up the position of professor in super unified physics and taking a former graduate in the same area of science, Yuko Kanabe, she has been teaching for over 5 years to her students, including the members of the Secret Sealing Club, Maribel Hearn and Renko Usami.One day, a breakthrough in dimensional technology allows her to travel to another world, one where she has free rein over science...but how will the reality hit her soon enough? And will she ever learn when not to cross the line and piss everyone off?A crossover fic that, while may appear like a slice of life, contains some deep, philosophical stuff. Take it seriously if you want.
Comments: 4
Kudos: 4





	1. The Gambit

**The Scientific Witch of Strangereal**

**Chapter 1: The Gambit**

“So...this ‘Strangereal’ world...it looks pretty interesting, hm?”  
  


The woman in a white coat and glasses, looking at the book, wondered how the world would look, thinking that it would be better than the hell she was in right now. A girl came in from behind, carrying an ornate tea set.

Setting it on the table, she looked over at what the woman was reading.

“Where are you going now?” the girl asked.

“Hmm...this ‘Strangereal’ world may be worth going to. There’s a few places I want to go to.”

The woman threw the cigarette she was smoking towards the trash can then put her feet on the wooden table. The girl served her some tea, placing it on the table.  
  


“So you’re planning to go there next month?”

The woman took the cup gently and sipped some of the tea, then mumbled to herself, “Yes, I suppose so. Tell my class that I won’t be here for a week, find a good substitute. Also, reschedule my speech to the community college.”

The girl, quickly writing these down on her notebook, yelled, “I’ll do my best, professor!”

And with that, she left in a hurry. The woman turned around and reviewed the details of her flight one last time. Grinning, she took another sip.  
  
“Strangereal...sounds like fantasy, yet also like reality,” she monologued to herself, thinking that maybe, just maybe, it would be...more ready for a change.

  
The bell rings. Sighing, she grabbed her teaching materials and walked out of her office, where the same young girl was waiting for her, checking her notebook.

“Miss, it’s physics class next,” she reminded the woman.

“I know, I know. No need to be so worried.”  
  
And as they left, she shut the office door behind her. One that attracted anyone who just so happened to pass by that area. It was a simple, wooden door, and on it was a sign that read:

**Rikako Ametsukana-Asakura**

**Super Unified Physics Professor of Tokyo University**

**Come back, maybe later. Or never.**

\---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

_A/N: It’s time._

_I’ve finally decided to put all my commitment into this, a Touhou x Ace Combat crossover that spans the whole timeline!_

_For my plans, I wanna start from the beginning (a.k.a. Just before the Belkan War) and end with Electrosphere (a.k.a. I still have to decide which route I’ll take and also keep in mind that the events shown in the game never really happened since, spoilers, it was all a simulation made by Simon for Nemo to see if he would kill the guy that stole his girlfriend, Yoko.)_

_On to the future then!_ _  
_ _  
_ _Let’s go dance with angels!_

  
_-AdagumoNoRikako_ _  
_


	2. After-School Tea Time

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Rikako and her assistant discuss the former incident that introduced the professor to the Outside World, a world of possibilities.
> 
> The Dimensional Dream Incident.

**Chapter 2: After-School Tea Time**

_ Tokyo University, Japan. December 8, 2045 _

“I just don’t understand how students can be so noisy when I give them the very best education I can give just to shut them up.”   
  


Rikako sighed as she dragged her own body and her things out of the classroom, her assistant, Yuko Kanabe, following behind her, towards the hallway.

Yuko checked her notebook. “It seems that your class has become more unusual with each day that passes, miss. At first, it felt like a normal day, but then-”   
  


“But it became harder to focus on the lesson. I know. Either it’s them making more friends in the class and wanting to talk to them more. Or maybe...it’s me,” the teacher sighed.

“Nonsense, miss. Your teaching is top-notch. You’re not one of the top professors in school for no reason. Of course, you would be THE best if-”   
The professor hushed Yuko as soon as she noticed another teacher pass by them, just a few meters away. She seemed to not mind them either. Anyone could tell who she was because of the red dress she always wore.

“Isn’t that Professor Yumemi Okazaki, miss?” Yuko tried to murmur towards Rikako.   
  
“Oh, her? Yeah...I know her.”

They both stared at her for a while as she walked before she disappeared into an office. Then both of them turned and went into their own office, where the tea set was still there, as well as a half-empty cup of tea. Yuko led Rikako to her comfortable seat, then served her another cup of chamomile tea.   
  
“More sugar, miss?” Yuko politely asked.   
  


“That would be nice.” Yuko then put a sugar cube in the professor’s tea and passed it to her, who began stirring it. The assistant then did the same with her own, sitting down after that.

After a few minutes of silence, Yuko broke it. “So...mind telling me what’s the beef between you and Okazaki?”   
  


“Well ” the professor sipped her tea for a bit, “it’s going to take a while. It happened years ago.”

“Tell me everything.”

Rikako sighed, then put her cup down.

“It was...not a cold and snowy day. I think it was summer when it happened...”

\-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

_ Gensokyo, 15 years ago _

“Rikako-san!”   
In her home, the younger scientist turned her head from the thesis she was writing on a notebook to the window, where the sun was shining. It took her awhile to adjust to the glare, then she finally saw a figure near her window.

“...What’s the matter, Kana?”

She walked over to the window and opened it to talk to the figure.

“Hey, Rikako-san! Do you remember-”

Rikako interrupted her, not in a rude way, but rather in the ‘know-it-all’ manner.

“Kana Anaberal. Poltergeist. 347 years old. Died from an accident where sharp glass from a broken cup stabbed your chest. Is annoying overall. Yes, I do remember you.”

“...Just wanted to see if people remember me, okay?” the poltergeist grumbled.

The scientist sighed. She didn’t want anyone wasting her time right now. And now, someone was potentially doing just that.

“Quit the small talk. Why are you here?” Rikako asked firmly. The poltergeist, after a few seconds of silence, spoke up.   
  
“Here. Something’s going on. You might be interested.” she told Rikako, passing a piece of paper to her. The latter adjusted her glasses for a bit, then read it.

**Recently, there has been a discovery of ruins somewhere near the Hakurei Shrine. It’s said that whoever enters the ruins can have their wish granted. However, only one human/youkai/spirit can enter.**

**Therefore, I am organizing a competition to see who will enter the ruins and the winner gets that honor. To whoever wants to join, simply go to the ruins.**

**-Hakurei Reimu, shrine maiden**

“This is interesting. A contest to have your wish granted?” Rikako wondered as she placed the paper on the table.

“Yeah. Sounds like a trick to me. I mean, I’ve read lots of books, and this is usually how they lure potential victims for-”

“I get it, okay.” Rikako interrupted. The scientist then stood up and began packing things into a bag.

It always seemed quite strange to her that incidents like this were pretty common in Gensokyo, to the point where it’s just accepted as the norm. The books that she had read back in Suzunaan didn’t exactly do extensive discussion over them. Humans and youkai alike simply talked about them for a few minutes, probably a laugh or two...then changed the subject. It didn’t stick too much in their memory.

That was what always bothered her.

_ Wasn’t a huge incident supposed to stick? To remind us of the mistakes we made? _

Kana looked at her as she stuffed various things into her little backpack: some ‘food in a can’, a ‘light beam emitter’, maybe a ‘magic projectile-firing device’, perhaps she needed that ‘input-dependent output monitor display with hardware input buttons.’

“Are you okay with carrying around all of that? You won’t need it when fighting Reimu and her company, you know.” Kana asked, confused, to which Rikako smiled.

“Who said I’m fighting? I strive for efficiency. I’ll just skip the fighting and get to the ruins without anyone noticing.”

_ That’s always what she does, going around the problem as a solution,  _ Kana thought. And she had no objections.

“Right. I forgot one thing.”

Rikako went into another room, then emerged from it with a backpack-sized device. The poltergeist scoffed at the thing.

“What’s that supposed to be?” Kana asked.

“A portable flying machine. At least that’s what Rinnosuke told me,” Rikako answered, “he always tells me what they do.”   
  


“That’s Rinnosuke for ya.”

She strapped the machine on her back, then the backpack on the machine’s back. A sight that might baffle anyone at first.

“So, shall we go?” Rikako asked as she went out the front door, ready to leave.

“Why do you need that machine? Can’t you fly with magic?” her companion questioned.

“I prefer not to. Personal reasons.”

Kana decided not to pursue that touchy subject anymore, and just nodded, saying that it was time to go.

And there they went, a scientist and a poltergeist, ready to see the ruins that everyone was talking about.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey, everyone! Sorry for a short introduction chapter, I feel pretty sick...
> 
> Anyway, I'll try my best to cover the incident in full in the next chapter, that is, if COVID-19 doesn't get me by then~
> 
> Have fun...buddy.
> 
> -Definitely not Pixy


	3. One-Shot 1

**In Memory of my Friend, who died in a terrorist attack years ago.**

**All I Need**

A winter morning in Gensokyo. 

While most of the people here did have some way of making fire to warm themselves in their homes, one human here did not quite have much luck.

Rika sat on the floor, near the only table in her humble home (by humble, she means that it was smaller than Marisa's or Reimu's home) that she herself had made out of wood and tiny amounts of metal, thinking about what next great yet overly complicated and useless invention to make. A blank blueprint and pencils were laid out on the table.

She had thought moments ago of a robot for assisting Reimu in cleaning to help soften the relationship between them...if only Yumemi hadn't given her Ruukoto, then it would sound like a great idea.

Frustrated, Rika slammed her head on the table. She had access to technology that not a lot of residents know about (Rikako and Nitori, per se), but it wasn't enough. Simply because it was outdated. She wanted to know more, but she couldn't know more if she had such gadgets that would be laughable in the Outside World.

The engineer's head turned towards a piece of paper framed on the wall. It had been a wishlist, a compilation of all the technology she wanted in her lifetime. Most of them Rika had managed to procure via various methods (sometimes she would get them from Rinnosuke's shop, other times she would 'borrow' them from the other engineers), but one of them she hadn't found, despite her best efforts: a 3D printer. Rika had heard of them from Sumireko when they accidentally met, and she knew that once this piece of technology would find its way into her hands, there will be endless possibilities for machines to use against the shrine maiden. She had even told Nitori about it. 

_With the right materials, maybe...just maybe_...

Rika wakes up from her daydreams when she feels the wind act up. The weather around this time was usually cold, sure. But it usually wasn't THIS cold. It might just break the record for coldest temperature recorded. If only she could make fire just as easily as Mokou...

Sighing, she went out and began gathering firewood to make a fire inside the house, under the metallic chimney. As she kept collecting sticks, her mind would always go back to that wishlist.

To that printer.

However, Rika knew that getting one was near impossible. Gadgets from the outside world are hard to find, not to mention expensive when found. She had to waste her voice just to haggle. And those are only just for wrenches or cellphones. A printer? Laughable. Impossible. She could never get the money needed for it. Perhaps with debts, she could, but it was too risky. 

_Was it just her...or did she see the shadow of a creature in the distance?_

Shaking her head, as if to ignore what she had just seen, Rika headed back inside her home to light up the fire. However, as she trudged back in, she began to cough out something unusual...

Blood.

She had been surprised by it. She didn't think it would come back. But it somehow did...

She entered her home to be greeted by the usual sight of emptiness inside. Placing the firewood in the spot under the chimney, Rika grabbed a small lighter and tried to light it up.

First time, it didn't even make a spark. Feeling annoyed after all that work, she looked inside the lighter to find that the liquid inside had almost run out. Second time, it had lit the firewood, creating a nice fire to keep Rika warm and comfy.

Or at least she would be comfy if she wasn't coughing out blood.

Looking around, she soon found a small hole under the matting. Inside it was a smaller plastic box. Retrieving the box, she placed it on the small table again.

Her hands reached out to open it, but she hesitated, letting her mind flash back...

\-----------------------------------------------------------

_"I have bad news for you, miss Kaname."_

_The male doctor, as calm as he looked, was obviously very nervous. Not by the news, but by the possible reactions of the mother._

_"Your daughter is...strange, so to speak. We diagnosed her, and apparently pieces of her mind are beginning to decay already. Now, listen-"_

_He didn't even finish his sentence when the mother, her face pale, started screaming._

_"I DID NOT GO THROUGH ALL THAT PAIN JUST TO WATCH MY RIKA DIE!"_

_The doctor kept his cool. He had dealt with mothers like these, after all._

_"Calm down, miss Kaname. The rate of decay is slow...for now. But when she grows in around 5 years, she may be unable to remember many events, or be paralyzed in any body part. We...cannot tell. But as far as I'm concerned, I'm giving her 11 years to live."_

_The mother, beginning to sob between sentences, didn't want that. No mother wanted to see their child die before they could even see them go to school. Make friends. Know love._

_"I...is there anything we can do...to stop it? Please...tell me there is a way!"_

_The doctor sighed. He had hoped she wouldn't ask._

_"...There's nothing we can do. Her condition is so rare, we have no cure or even any treatment or therapy for it. All we can do is make her happy. She must at least know how that feels. But if you are desperate..."_

_He shows her a small, white pill._

_"This can slow down the decaying process. But I have to warn you, miss Kaname, it's expensive as hell, and it's just in the prototype phase."_

_And for as far as Rika remembered, her mother had fed the pill to her every day, telling her that it was for her vitamin supplements. For that long, her mother had lied to her about her condition._

_And it wasn't like the brunette child noticed at all. For the early part of her childhood, she didn't notice herself going crazy or her memory fading away._

_It seemed like nothing was wrong, everything was going well. She went to school, she gained an extreme interest in machinery, she even found love in a boy just two seats in front of her during class that loved inventing. (Sadly, he moved to another town by seventh grade. That made Rika sad.)_

_And yet...she felt alone. Nobody wanted to make a single friend in her simply because she was the 'nerd' of the class, even if she didn't wear glasses. Her mother often rambled on and on about work, salaries and debts while little Rika played with metal and screws and wires. She didn't pay much attention to the child she was supposed to love because of how stressful it was to keep her alive._

_The debts and the stress and the money and the pills wrapped around her like chains, keeping her away from her own daughter, wrapping around her and tightening its grip._

_And then, her mother died._ _Little Rika was all alone. At the funeral, her mother's will was opened, and only then did Rika know the truth about her condition._ _She didn't make her own bubble, keeping her out from the rest of society. They were keeping her IN, trying to keep her alive and happy._

_And from then on, she was never truly happy. At seven years old._ _Nothing would make her smile sweetly again. She stopped taking her meds. Let death take her life from a decaying mind, she didn't care._

_And in Gensokyo, a place which she has no memory of getting into? She was that way too. If she couldn't be happy, why were all these humans and youkai happy?_

_She wanted them to suffer. To make them feel the same way she did._ _So she attacked the shrine maiden's home. And that failed, causing her to be banished from their society._

_Now, she was an outcast in both worlds. Let hope be damned._

_And so she lived her life this pitiful, cruel way, for as long as time allowed her._

\-----------------------------

Rika woke up to the sight of sunlight. D...did she sleep?

There was now blood all over the table, and she could see her fingers quickly withering away. Her memory was now a fuzzy video. She could barely move her hands. But she swore there was something else for her to do...was it...the box? 

Yes, that must be it!

She used up the rest of her strength to unlock the box, revealing its contents: one white pill. Around it was white powder. She was shocked. The rest must have been crushed somehow. They were useless.

Rika picked up the pill. It would only cause her to return to normal for a day, at most. The truth hit her. An unmistakable truth, yet one she could have avoided.

_She will die._

She began to sob. How could she have made such an obvious mistake? All she had to do was take her meds. That was it. But instead, what did she do? Go into a life of despair and stress. Just like her mother. She thought about it for a moment. The poor girl would only be alive for a day.

_Why take the pill now? Just throw it and let death take you. That should be faster._

Just as her thoughts began to get dark, there was a knock on the door. Grabbing a nearby stick as a cane, she walked all the way to the door and opened it. The one that knocked was gone. But there was a cardboard box. Curious, she opened it.

It was a 3D printer.

Rika never felt such surprise in her life. All her days, not one human felt care for her. Even her mother, the one that was meant to love her, just took care of her so she wouldn't feel guilty of killing someone. But this...one...they actually cared enough to send her the one thing the engineer wanted.

Her mind wandered back to the one pill that was left. She was going to die. That was for sure. But she had a 3D printer, the one thing she wanted more than ever. Wouldn't it be great to at least...play with it? While she was still alive?

And that was when her feelings suddenly changed. She felt her heart leap. Her mind concocted some sort of chemical that made her jump up and down (figuratively), but she couldn't explain it in words. Or at least, she had forgotten how to explain it.

She had found true happiness.

Rika walked back to the table, where the pill was lying. She picked it up carefully.

She wanted to enjoy this day. A day of true happiness, even if she knew that death was about to take her. Just once, she wanted to take a stand against the world and prove just how strong she really was. 

All she wanted was just one day.

\------------------------------------------------------

**Holy crap, am I usually this morbid?  
**

**Anyway, this is a short story that I had made for a contest. Hope you liked it. I still have the next chapter to write but the pandemic is messing up my schedule! I'll try to get it out as soon as possible.**

**Rikako out!**


End file.
